Shirley Jackson is, of course, best remembered for The Lottery (see
review),
one of the great short stories of all time, and for The Haunting of Hill
House, which has twice been made into a movie. But this terrific
novel is every bit as good as those others and may in fact be the best
thing she ever wrote.

From what I've read, it seems that Ms Jackson's work may well have been
an expression of her own psychological problems. If that's true,
this story is even more frightening. It is about two sisters, the
older one meek and shy, the other assertive and nearly demonic, who barricade
themselves inside a gutted mansion to escape the local townsfolk who torment
them because they suspect that the girls were involved in the mass killing
of four family members.

The psychological overtones are plentiful and troubling. There
is, first of all, the sense in which it appears that it is only when together
that the two sisters form one complete personality. Second, the crime
involved is not merely murder, but murder of the family, that ancient taboo.
Third, the two are completely alienated from the society around them, even
ignoring the few friendly neighbors who come by to try and help.
Jackson apparently had a horrendous relationship with her mother and with
the people of Bennington, where she lived. Local legend even had
it that The Lottery was based on an incident where local boys threw stones
at her. Finally there is a strong indication that not only are the
girls happier in their isolation, they may truly be better off by themselves
and they may be more "normal" than the people in town.

At any rate, the story is creepy and sly and a great deal of fun.
This is one of the truly great gothic horror novels of all time.